Around here the primary driver for tablet buyers is going to be reading. And for reading the Mini falls short compared to other alternatives. I looked into it but, as atractive as the weight spec is, the rest of the package didn't add up.
Not for reading, anyway.

Also, the one thing tablets are best for is reading color content such as comics and magazines, both of which benefit immensely from increased screen size and resolution.

A retina iPad Mini would be better for comics and magazines, but it's still too small.

Also, the one thing tablets are best for is reading color content such as comics and magazines, both of which benefit immensely from increased screen size and resolution.

And then some.
So far the few comics and mags I've tried so far look waaay better to the FireHD9 compared to even a FullHD PC monitor. Pixel density does matter. Up to a point.
Also, I've long been an advocate of 16x10 aspect screens over 4x3 for reading: It's good to see I was right that it is an optimum aspect for reading, both in portrait and dual-column landscape.

And then some.
So far the few comics and mags I've tried so far look waaay better to the FireHD9 compared to even a FullHD PC monitor. Pixel density does matter. Up to a point.
Also, I've long been an advocate of 16x10 aspect screens over 4x3 for reading: It's good to see I was right that it is an optimum aspect for reading, both in portrait and dual-column landscape.

Speaking specifically of North American comics, their print aspect ratio is 3:2 (15:10) so when viewing a single page in portrait 16:10 is better than 4:3. Where the iPad really shines though, is with double-page spreads because they are in a 4:3 landscape orientation.

Still, for most comic readers a large 16:10 HD screen is the best available option.

I am still happy with my iPad 2, but my dad has been eyeing it and I would like a retina screen for reading my PDFs, so I will likely give my iPad 2 to my dad the next time the iPads get updating and pick up a new device for myself. Also, I would like my next tablet to have 4g, so that's another reason to update.
It will be hard for me to choose between the iPad mini and the iPad 5; I like the size of the full sized iPads for reading comics and magazines, but I really like the 8 inch screen on the iPad mini, which looks to be a great size for reading novels and would make the device much more portable. I would maybe even give my smartphone to my husband and just carry a feature phone and the iPad mini with me. I am curious as to how PDFs will look on the smaller screen, so if I do end up purchasing an iPad mini I will make sure that I test one out beforehand.

Speaking specifically of North American comics, their print aspect ratio is 3:2 (15:10) so when viewing a single page in portrait 16:10 is better than 4:3. Where the iPad really shines though, is with double-page spreads because they are in a 4:3 landscape orientation.

Still, for most comic readers a large 16:10 HD screen is the best available option.

Size-wise, I actually prefer the Nexus 7 1280*800 for reading in portrait. Maybe if the 10" tablets get a significant weight reduction, I'd like them better. For double-page spreads, though, I agree that 4:3 works best. However, I'm not sure if a 7.9" display even with retina would be comfortable enough for reading comics in double-page landscape mode. 16:10 could still have been okay for landscape but the issue with new Android tablets with ICS/JB is you don't get access to the full 16:10 resolution because of the status and navigation bars. That said, Apple's closed system is quite stifling so I've actually been looking into Android tablets with 4:3 2048*1536 displays. Right now, that's mostly China tabs but Archos is releasing a dual-core 9.7" Titanium HD and has announced a quad-core 9.7" Platinum HD. I don't think performance of either is quite up to snuff just yet but I give it a year or so and I expect we'll see inexpensive chipsets capable of driving FullHD or retina display resolution.

I find the iPad Mini very interesting primarily due to its weight. If Apple manages to maintain weight and battery life with a retina display version, it's a maybe leaning strongly towards yes.

16:10 could still have been okay for landscape but the issue with new Android tablets with ICS/JB is you don't get access to the full 16:10 resolution because of the status and navigation bars.

Dunno about the generics but on the FireHD8.9 I have no problem reading comics, ebooks, or magazines in fullscreen mode with no bars. Most reading/viewing apps have a barless setting and a touch protocol to call up the controls when needed. Bluefire, Overdrive, Coolreader, the various PDF viewers... they all let me use every last pixel of screen for content and only content.

Dunno about the generics but on the FireHD8.9 I have no problem reading comics, ebooks, or magazines in fullscreen mode with no bars. Most reading/viewing apps have a barless setting and a touch protocol to call up the controls when needed. Bluefire, Overdrive, Coolreader, the various PDF viewers... they all let me use every last pixel of screen for content and only content.

On my ICS/JB tablets (Asus Nexus 7, Toshiba Excite 7.7, Asus Transformer Infinity, Ainol Novo7 Venus), the fullscreen option just dims the navbar but doesn't get rid of it. I remember fullscreen working before on Gingerbread but on ICS/JB, it seems the only way I'd be able to get rid of the navbar is with a custom ROM.

On my ICS/JB tablets (Asus Nexus 7, Toshiba Excite 7.7, Asus Transformer Infinity, Ainol Novo7 Venus), the fullscreen option just dims the navbar but doesn't get rid of it. I remember fullscreen working before on Gingerbread but on ICS/JB, it seems the only way I'd be able to get rid of the navbar is with a custom ROM.

Try the app GMD Gesture control.
It requires root access, but merely a matter of five minutes work, if that. No custom ROM required. With the app, you can hide the status bar, and use gestures instead. There's an attached video demoing the app, and at the 30s point the status bar is hidden.

Try the app GMD Gesture control.
It requires root access, but merely a matter of five minutes work, if that. No custom ROM required. With the app, you can hide the status bar, and use gestures instead. There's an attached video demoing the app, and at the 30s point the status bar is hidden.

Size-wise, I actually prefer the Nexus 7 1280*800 for reading in portrait. Maybe if the 10" tablets get a significant weight reduction, I'd like them better. For double-page spreads, though, I agree that 4:3 works best. However, I'm not sure if a 7.9" display even with retina would be comfortable enough for reading comics in double-page landscape mode. 16:10 could still have been okay for landscape but the issue with new Android tablets with ICS/JB is you don't get access to the full 16:10 resolution because of the status and navigation bars. That said, Apple's closed system is quite stifling so I've actually been looking into Android tablets with 4:3 2048*1536 displays. Right now, that's mostly China tabs but Archos is releasing a dual-core 9.7" Titanium HD and has announced a quad-core 9.7" Platinum HD. I don't think performance of either is quite up to snuff just yet but I give it a year or so and I expect we'll see inexpensive chipsets capable of driving FullHD or retina display resolution.

I find the iPad Mini very interesting primarily due to its weight. If Apple manages to maintain weight and battery life with a retina display version, it's a maybe leaning strongly towards yes.

I have a 10.1" 1920x1200 tablet and it works much better for my eyes than a 7" model regardless of resolution. A 7" ends up providing 47% of a North American comics page and my almost 50-year-old eyes have trouble with the half-size lettering regardless of how sharp it is.

I think that I would. Because the Ipad they have now is a bit big so you can almost have a macbook air instead. But the Ipad is muck better to show documents on. The screen on the Ipad retina is really great, so if I could get the same quality on a smaller device I would get it right away.